Dawgs By Nature
Three days after the Cleveland Browns lost their fourth game of the season, 21-17, against the Minnesota Vikings, on October 8, Browns GM Andrew Berry made yet another trade. This one wasn’t expected or predicted.
For two seasons, there had been speculation that CB Greg Newsome would be traded. Most media outlets had Newsome being shipped off in a draft-day trade. But those years came and went. In training camp this summer, CB M.J. Emerson tore his Achilles and was subsequently placed on IR after surgery, which placed him out for the entire year.
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It was then that any Newsome trade talks ceased. For better or worse, the Browns’ defense needed Newsome more than ever. You don’t just shop around and grab a capable cornerback at ProFootball R Us any time there is a pressing need, much less as the season opener was fast approaching.
Newsome had been the starting outside corner opposite Denzel Ward when Emerson was taken in the third round of the 2022 NFL draft. By mid-season, Emerson had pushed Newsome off his starting spot and sent him to the slot position instead. Still playing, just not at his accustomed spot.
Newsome was a first-round draft pick in 2021. First-rounders are supposed to be the rock and soul of your team. After all, the franchise is paying them to be quality help. So, for a third-round guy to come in and, within half a season, devalue Newsome was quite a feat.
But when DC Jim Schartz was hired, he never quite took a shine to Newsome. In Schwartz’s scheme, the cornerbacks are required to play man and blanket, with a safety over the top sometimes. This means the coverage has to be top-shelf. And Newsome was never a shadow cornerback. He had quickness and flashed being physical with good hand punches and good instincts. But he has always played too high and couldn’t handle the truly explosive speed receivers in the league.
And now with Emerson unavailable for the entire season, Schwartz was stuck with Newsome.
It just so happens that the Jacksonville Jaguars were regretting the contract situation of one of their starting cornerbacks, Tyson Campbell. He was getting paid more than they thought he should be, and wanted to get out of the contract and move on to something different. On July 23, 2024, Jacksonville under head coach Doug Pederson inked Campbell to a four-year, $76.50 million contract that included $53.40 million guaranteed with a signing bonus of $16 million.
That something different was Newsome, who was playing for Cleveland in his fifth-year option campaign. The advantage to a team is that if the player is playing lights out, they will, in all likelihood, sign him to a bigger contract. However, if he has been playing in the mediocre category, the new contract won’t be substantial and will likely be for two or three years, providing financial flexibility to the franchise rather than being locked in.
To Jacksonville,...
